In conventional aquatic hunting activities, for instance, where the weapon of choice is typically a spear gun, various devices have been developed to hold a front end of the spear shaft in a selected position at a distal end of the gun until the trigger is pulled and the spear is launched towards the intended prey.
In one such device, the distal end of the gun mounts a fixed bridge defining an axial seat for engaging the spear shaft. The spear shaft remains in position until the gun is fired, despite any movement by the scuba diver. A metal bar substantially in the form of a U-shaped arch, commonly referred to as a nosepiece, is also provided. The bar is attached to the distal end of the gun, the U-shaped arch having its open end facing a proximal end of the gun. The arch can rotate freely about the distal end, the two arms of the arch being attached to the ends of an elastic cable, typically made of rubber, which is first tensioned and then released to launch the spear shaft. Since the ends of the cable are secured to the nosepiece arms, which are free to rotate about the distal end of the gun, the nosepiece lifts away from the gun when the cable is released, and, thereby, avoids obstructing the sliding motion of the spear shaft.
While useful, such systems have been found disadvantageous in that they allow a degree of slack for the spear shaft inside the bridge, which slack often prevents the scuba diver from taking accurate aim. In an effort to overcome this drawback, a simplified version of the arrangement has also been developed, such version having the bridge at the distal end of the gun, whereas the ends of the elastic cable are connected directly, in a fixed position, to either side of the distal end.
In yet a further conventional arrangement, no bridge is provided and the front end of the spear shaft is held in position by a rope attached to the spear. The rope typically passes crosswise over the spear shaft, holding it against the end of the gun. Although this device provides considerable structural simplicity as compared to prior spear gun systems, such benefits are far outweighed by the disadvantage that the scuba diver must adopt a more complicated procedure to load the gun.
Hence, by conventional wisdom, if a bridge is provided that facilitates the procedure for loading a spear, then the end of the spear shaft must be held in place by the bridge using an unavoidable degree of slack which, in turn, reduces the accuracy of a diver's aim, should the diver change position. If, on the other hand, the nosepiece is eliminated, then it becomes considerably more complicated to load the spear.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for locking a front end of a spear shaft in a spear gun for scuba divers. The device comprises a bridge-shaped element extending crosswise over a distal end of the gun with a substantially U-shaped nosepiece connected to the distal end and revolving freely about a crosswise axis thereof. The nosepiece has a plurality of arms joined respectively to ends of a relatively elastic cable that is tensioned against a rear end of the shaft, when the shaft is placed on a support surface along the body of the gun. Also, the bridge element is attached to and integrally with the ends of the elastic cable and is at a distance from the support surface such that the shaft is retained against the surface when the spear is in a stowed or loaded position. In addition, the ends of the elastic cable are connected to corresponding terminal bushings attached to and integrally with the arms of the nosepiece, the bridge element being affixed to the bushings and extending crosswise from one to the other.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, a device is provided for locking the front end of the spear shaft in a spear gun for scuba divers. The device includes bridge-shaped element extending crosswise over a distal end of the gun; and a substantially U-shaped nosepiece joined to the distal end and revolving freely around a crosswise axis thereof. The nosepiece comprises a plurality of arms joined respectively to the ends of a relatively elastic cable that is tensioned against a rear end of the shaft, when the shaft is placed on a support surface along the body of the gun. Additionally, the bridge element is attached to and integral with the ends of the elastic cable and is at a distance from the support surface such that the shaft is retained against the surface when the spear is in a stowed or loaded position.